The burnt maple
by Flyere
Summary: What if Mapleshade never took a riverclan mate? Maplepaw is an apprentice, with a brutal and viscous father as her mentor and three evil brothers. One day, she vows to kill every last one of them. But when she finds herself bound to that promise, she becomes what she never wanted to be. T for violence
1. Allegiances

**Thunderclan**

Leader: Beechstar

Deputy: Quickstep

Medicine cat: Fallingcloud (apprentice, dawnpaw)

**Warriors**

Greentail

Ravenclaw

Lightmoon (apprentice, Nightpaw)

Wishfur

Swiftclaw (apprentice, Maplepaw)

Skywing (apprentice, Snakepaw)

Petalstep

Sparrowclaw

Willowfern (apprentice, Foxpaw)

Redtail

Firebird (apprentice, Mintpaw)

Mossfur

Breezesong

Blackpelt (apprentice, Owlpaw)

Runningstream

Moonflight

**Apprentices**

Dawnpaw

Nightpaw

Maplepaw

Jump-paw

Foxpaw

Mintpaw

Owlpaw

**Queens**

Longfern (Kits, Wildkit, Highkit)

**Elders**

Breezeclaw

Songthorn

Runningfoot


	2. The maple tree is born

Ripplefoot collapsed on her side, breathing heavily. It was happening. She diddnt know where she was. Oh starclan, help her. She couldn't do this.

She let out a scream as a spasm wrenched her stomach, rippling across with pain. She moaned.

She could just here Moonflight whispering "push" as she remembered from her sister's kitting. She needed to push.

She moaned as the first kit slid out. She leaned up and managed to give it a quick lick before her stomach was wrenched yet again.

It happened three more times. She felt something warm and sticky. Blood...

Suddenly, Ripplefoot heard paw steps. "Ripplefoot!" she heard.

Smeone burst through the bushes, along with someone else. Swiftclaw, her mate. And moonfght.

"save the kits" she managed to whisper.

"no!" he screamed. "don't leave me please!"

She shook her head. "I love you"

He yowled. Then dropped his head and licked her shoulder. "what are their names?" he whispered.

"the tabby tom is Snakekitt" she whispered. "the grey one is Foxkit"

He nodded, taking it in.

"the third one is named Nightkit" she said. "and the fourth..."

But her voice died out. And with a final gasp, her eyes glazed over and her head lolled back.

He moaned, then turned to the final kit-the only she cat, a ginger and white she cat.

"maplekit" he decided.

He turned to Moonflight. "will you help me carry them home?"

She nodded. "they'll make good warriors."

"she will" he said. "and I'm going to make sure of it"

A shadow of doubt crossed moonflight's face. Swiftclaw used to be a brutal and arrogant warrior, but ripplefoot had kept him calm. What wold be the fate of these it's whenc she was gone?


	3. Any day

"again"

Maplekit rolled over and leapt up, her tiny claws extended. She gave out a squak of a snarl, and landed with a smack.

"you lost your balance" swiftclaw snapped.

She looked up nervously. "yes swiftclaw" she squeaked.

"now go get ready for the ceremony" he hissed.

She nodded and bounded away. Her back ached and her claws were sore. She sighed. He just wanted to make her a good warrior.

She walked in to the nursery and sat down, grooming herself in her nest. Robinflight, the queen who nursed her when she was a newborn, had recently moved to the elders den, making room for maplekit to have her own nest. Her brothers shared a nest. Swiftclaw thought she needed her own space. Longfern shared the opposite side of the den with her newborn kits, Moonkit and Highkit.

"ready?" Foxkit squeaked from the other nest. "I'm going to be the best apprentice ever!"

Snakekit and Nightkit nodded. "he is!" they squeaked. Foxkit had always been the most popular amongst them.

"no your not" mapleshade cut in. "I am"

Foxkit rolled his ees. "I could take you any day!"

"Fine" she snapped. "when our mentors battle train us, well see who's better"

She cut him off by exiting the den. She was better. Swiftclaw always said so.

The air was fresh and cool, aperfect day for training. The others puttered out of the nursery. Foxkit was demonstrating the new move he had picked up from the apprentices.

Maplekit learned it when she was three moons.

"let all cats gather here beneath the high rock!" she heard a yowl. She looked up to see Beechstar, his massive body covering the rock.

"I have brought you today for a very special ceremony"

He turned to Foxkit. "Foxkit has reached the age of six moons and is now ready to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you become a warrior, you shall be known as Foxpaw. Your mentor will be Willowfern. "

"willowfern" he said. "as Redtail has become a warrior, you are now ready to take on an apprentice. Larkwind has taught you well, and I expect you to pass on y loyalty and ambition to Foxpaw"

He leapt down and touched noses with Foxpaw.

He continued, naming Lightmoon to nightkit and Skywing to Snakekit. (or rather, nightpaw and Snakepaw)

He finally settled on maplekit. He said the ritual, and proclaimed her maplepaw.

"your mentor will be Swiftclaw. I expect him to fully develop the skills he himself passed on to you as his daughter."

Maplepaw was stunned. Her father had good intentions but he was harsh. She had hoped for a kinder mentor.

"come one then" he snapped. "First is a boundary tour. Then fighting."

She followed him, head hanging and paws drooping.


	4. Every last one of them

"okay. When you dive, roll and scratch his stomach" swiftclaw growled. "and don't lose"

Maplepaw's feet we're itching for a fight. Ever since Foxpaw had challenged her in the nursery, she had been waiting to prove she could beat him. She finally had the chance now.

He looked carefree. He had underestimated her.

"remember" willowfern said loudly. "this is a _practice_ battle. I don't want anyone getting hurt.

Maplepaw nodded and crouched down. Foxpaw grinned.

"go"

Foxpaw leapt at maplepaw, his large frame casting shadow over her. She quickly don't beneath him, twisting her body and jutting up with her hind legs so to kick Imm in the stomach. He was thrown over her, and landed with a smack in the sand.

He got up slowly, hissing before running at her full speed. Maplepaw simply jumped to the side and leapt on his back. She kicked with her hind paws before leaping off and landing lightly on the ground.

"enough" she head Swiftclaw say. "good job, maplepaw. Willowfern, you need to talk to your apprentice. He'll embarrass us all"

Foxpaw opened his mouth to protest but Swiftclaw cut him off by leaving the clearing. "come on maplepaw" he said.

Maplepaw smirked at Foxpaw and followed her father, happy she had finally put him in his place.

"go on back to camp" swiftclaw said. "I'm going to check for prey. Catch something on your way home"

Maplepaw opened her mouth to say something, but he turned and bounded away.

Maplepaw turned and followed the well marked scent trail to the camp. She was close to the camp when she saw a squirrel scuttling towards a nut on the ground. She instinctively dropped in to a hunter's crouch. It was absorbed in breaking the nutshell, picking it up and gnawing it with it's teeth.

Maplepaw crept up to it silently. She carefully moved until she was nearly a tail length away.

Then she pounced. It let out a quick squeak then fell limp in her jaws.

She let it fall and stepped back with satisfaction. It looked delicious...

No. The clan had to be fed first.

She regretfully picked up the squirrel and carried it back, weaving through the pines and finally coming to the camp entrance. She laid down the squirrel and quickly picked up twotwice and a sparrow. She padded over to the elders den and ducked inside.

"hi Songthorn" she said. "I've brought some prey."

"oh good" the elder said, looking up. "Breezeclaw, wake up" she said to the snoring Tom.

"what?" he said sleepily, then sat up. "it's about time" he said crossly. "lazy apprentices"

Maplepaw glared at him. "I was battle training so I could keep you safe!" she snapped.

"don't need apprentices to keep me safe" he muttered, taking a mouse and devouring it.

"ignore him" songthorn said, taking the sparrow. "I'll give the other mouse to Runningfoot when he comes back from the dirtplace.

Maplepaw nodded and turned away. "don't forget to come back later to see to my ticks" she heard breezclaw say grumpily.

"had a bad day?" She muttered to herself. Breeze law had always been grumpy, but this... This was unusual even for him.

Padding out to the clearing, she caught sight of Foxpaw. He whispered something to Nightpaw and stalked over.

"you cheated" he hissed furiously. "Willowfern hadn't taught me the back hold yet! It wasn't fair!"

"oh please" she hissed. "I won, fair and square. Go sulk to Snakepaw about it or something. Oh, and I have to go hunt. That means you need to clean out the elders den."

she made eye last part up, of course. But it was fantastic to see the shocked look on her brother's face. She smiled, then padded out the gorse tunnel again.

"you cheated."

Snakepaw's words hissed in to her brain. She whirled around. "I did not cheat!" she yowled angrily. "go and do something productive, will you? I'm hunting"

"cheater" he hissed again. "your a liar and a fake"

That was too much for Maplepaw. Without a word, she reared up and smacked him over the head. He fell back, dizzily.

"Go away!" she yelled. "I never want to see you again!"

"wait!" he yowled. "Maplepaw, I diddnt mean-"

But she diddnt hear him. She was too busy bounding away in to the forest. She would show them all. One day, when she was leader, she would absolutely get her revenge.


End file.
